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November 24, 2024
 

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Jun Hongo

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Jun Hongo
Jun Hongo graduated from Boston University and joined The Japan Times in 2006. He covers a wide range of domestic news, including politics and business. He is an avid Red Sox fan.
Japan Times
JAPAN
May 11, 2013
Kagoshima temple fails in bid to get loan to buy Chongryon's Tokyo HQ
The chief priest of the Buddhist temple that won the bid to acquire the Tokyo headquarters of the pro-Pyongyang group Chongryon said Friday he has failed to gather enough funds for the purchase, suggesting financial institutions were pressured not to extend loans to his temple.
JAPAN
May 10, 2013
Tourism goal sparks plan to expedite immigration process
The government may simplify the immigration process to make it easier for foreign tourists to enter Japan and achieve its goal of bringing in 25 million visitors a year by 2020.
Japan Times
JAPAN
May 9, 2013
TICAD to redefine Japan aid to Africa
When the first Tokyo International Conference on African Development was held 20 years ago, circumstances in Japan and Africa were vastly different than they are today.
Japan Times
JAPAN
May 7, 2013
Fukushima debris disposal falling short
The Environment Ministry admits that disposing of disaster debris in Fukushima Prefecture will not be completed by the April 2014 target.
Japan Times
JAPAN
May 3, 2013
Girl group bases style on Nikkei ups and downs
Kanon Mori, Yuki Sakura, Hinako Kuroki and Jun Amaki have been following the Nikkei 225 stock average obsessively since Prime Minister Shinzo Abe took office in December. The oldest of the foursome is Mori, but she is still only 23. The youngest is Kuroki, 16 and still in high school.
BUSINESS / Economy
Apr 27, 2013
BOJ stands pat on new monetary easing steps
The Bank of Japan on Friday put off additional monetary easing while providing optimistic predictions in its Outlook for Economic Activity and Prices report by boosting inflation forecasts.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 26, 2013
Parties lining up celebrities for Upper House race
Former prosecutor Masaru Wakasa, 56, a frequent commentator on news programs and talk shows who once worked in the Tokyo District Public Prosecutor's Office, said Thursday he will run in this summer's Upper House election as a Liberal Democratic Party candidate.
JAPAN
Apr 19, 2013
Ome marathoners offer support to fellow runners bombed in Boston
Organizers of Tokyo's Ome Marathon expressed their condolences to the victims of the Boston Marathon bombings, stressing they intend to work "hand in hand" with the race's host to help overcome the tragedy.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 13, 2013
Fans flock early to snag Murakami's latest book
Fans of Haruki Murakami lined up at bookstores from the wee hours of Friday morning to be the first to get their hands on the famed author's much-anticipated new novel.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Apr 12, 2013
Prices outpace incomes as yen softens
Prices are rising before incomes are and thus consumers are feeling the pain of the yen's depreciation driven by 'Abenomics.'
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Apr 11, 2013
Kuroda defends his major policy shakeup
The impact of the dramatic monetary policies adopted last week by the Bank of Japan was "within expectations," but the bank will keep a close watch on markets, BOJ Gov. Haruhiko Kuroda said Wednesday.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Apr 5, 2013
Kuroda plans huge bond binge for BOJ
Bank of Japan Gov. Haruhiko Kuroda reveals his strategy for ending more than a decade of deflation by expanding the central bank's purchases of government bonds and allowing it to buy riskier assets.
JAPAN
Mar 30, 2013
'Loophole drugs' easy for teenagers to obtain
Use of quasi-legal "loophole drugs" is spreading quickly and teens are getting caught up due to easy access and lack of proper awareness, the latest studies show.
JAPAN
Mar 25, 2013
Abe wants TOEFL to be key exam
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is not satisfied with revising monetary policy — he also appears bent on reviving another failing field: the public's ability to speak English.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Mar 22, 2013
Deflation foe Kuroda takes helm of BOJ
New Bank of Japan Gov. Haruhiko Kuroda reiterated his determination to end Japan's decades-long deflation after officially being named to the position Thursday by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Mar 20, 2013
Shirakawa exits after 'turbulent' BOJ term
Departing Bank of Japan Gov. Masaaki Shirakawa expresses regret for not being able to end a decades-long struggle with deflation during his 'turbulent' five years in office, but adds that he believes a recovery is possible.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Mar 19, 2013
Ginza stage set for Kabukiza's fifth coming
The venerable Kabukiza Theater in Tokyo's Ginza district reopens April 2 after three years of renovations and the addition of a 29-floor attached office tower.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / ANALYSIS
Mar 16, 2013
Kuroda rides in on high hopes, high-set bar
"Abenomics" looks ready to bloom just in time for spring, given the Diet's approval Friday of Haruhiko Kuroda as the next governor of the Bank of Japan.
Japan Times
JAPAN / History
Mar 15, 2013
Lawmaker alleges sex-slave denial censored
The deletion from YouTube of statements by Nippon Ishin no Kai (Japan Restoration Party) lawmaker Nariaki Nakayama denying the Imperial Japanese Army forced thousands of Asian females to provide sex for soldiers during the war has once again put NHK under the national spotlight.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 12, 2013
NPO brought Tohoku's foreigners together
A teacher congratulates a Philippine student for acing a Japanese-language test at a local community hall. Her instructor, Kanae Sato, is from Taiwan, and like most of the residents of Ishinomaki, Miyagi Prefecture, both saw their homes destroyed by tsunami two years ago.
U.S. aircraft carrier returns to Japan carrying navy’s ‘most capable fighter’
U.S. 7th Fleet Commander Vice Adm. Fred Kacher speaks to reporters shortly after the arrival of aircraft carrier USS George Washington at Yokosuka naval base in Kanagawa Prefecture on Friday.
Tokyo police care for lost umbrellas, keys and flying squirrels
An employee at the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department Lost and Found Center in the Iidabashi area of central Tokyo bags, tags and organizes thousands of items.
After Shohei Ohtani bump, Iwate ironware maker sees brighter future
Kaito Kikuchi's decision to send superstar Shohei Ohtani one of his company's traditional ironware tea kettles has paid off with a surge of interest from general consumers.
Japan approves ¥21.9 trillion stimulus plan
The policy chiefs of the Democratic Party for the People, Liberal Democratic Party and Komeito — Makoto Hamaguchi (left), Itsunori Onodera (center) and Mitsunari Okamoto — shake hands after reaching an agreement on an economic stimulus package on Wednesday.
Woman dies after train collides with car in Tochigi
A Moka Railway train car
133-year-old Kyushu railway station remains to be partially preserved
The remains of the original Moji Station in Kitakyushu
After Shohei Ohtani bump, Iwate ironware maker sees brighter future
Kaito Kikuchi's decision to send superstar Shohei Ohtani one of his company's traditional ironware tea kettles has paid off with a surge of interest from general consumers.
Shohei Ohtani wins National League MVP award
Shohei Ohtani celebrates after hitting a three-run home run against the Padres during the National League Division Series at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles last month.
The slow-burn success of ‘A Samurai in Time’
A 19th-century warrior gets struck by lightning and wakes to find himself in 21st-century Kyoto in Junichi Yasuda’s surprise hit “A Samurai in Time.”
Around a quarter of Japan married couples in their 20s met through dating apps
A survey released by an organization promoting “Good Couples Day” shows that 24% of couples in their 20s met their marriage partner through a dating app.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

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Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
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